It was Day 8 of our Santa Cruz adventure.  Due to circumstances mostly beyond my control I needed a place to eat dinner at 6:45 pm.  The kids were cranky and exhausted.  My husband was out eating with friends.  I was desperately seeking a place that was so entertaining that the little ones would behave themselves well enough that we wouldn’t be kicked out!

I found my oasis in the town of Capitola, California.   I headed to the Train Place Deli hoping that the mesmorizing sight of model trains would calm my rowdy crew.  Well, as you can see from the pictures below, the kids were still pretty rowdy, but the gracious service and fascinating trains did put everyone in a better mood.

Tired, but Happy at the Train Place Deli

The hardworking owners of the Train Place Deli welcomed us fifteen minutes before closing, patiently took my children’s order,  (A five year old can be pretty undecided at 7pm), and even treated us to some extra cookies.  My Italian Special was delicious and included: a huge salami sandwich, pasta salad, and a drink.  Each kids meal came with a big cookie which made everyone happy.

All Aboard at the Train Place Deli

Thomas Steams Along at the Train Place Deli

 If you are looking for more train adventures, this week we also took the beach train at Roaring Camp in Felton, Ca and visited Sonoma’s Traintown a very affordable train adventure.

Family Adventure Guidebooks participates in the Photo Friday Blog Roundup.  Check out more fun travel photos here.

Happy Trails,

Bridget

I regret, however, that I never had the chance to ride the ghost train. On October 24th and 25th train passengers will be treated to the Legend of Sleepy Hollow as they ride through the redwoods.  That ride was pretty spooky already.  I think that this fun Halloween themed presentation would make it even better.  If you are lucky enough to be in the Santa Cruz area, check it out and tell me about your adventure.

Here’s a picture from our Roaring Camp visit this Summer.

Happy Trails,

Bridget

Destiny gets to work at the Blacksmith Shop